


A Light in the Shadows

by LadyDracarys



Series: Hell Hath No Fury... [2]
Category: Dragon Age (Video Games), Dragon Age - All Media Types, Dragon Age: Inquisition, Dragon Age: Origins
Genre: Angst, F/M, Fluff, One Shot Collection, some nsfw content
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-05-17
Updated: 2018-05-17
Packaged: 2019-05-08 07:50:15
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 15
Words: 9,656
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14689686
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LadyDracarys/pseuds/LadyDracarys
Summary: Aurora survived the Circle’s fall in Kinloch Hold ten years ago. Since, her greatest desire has been to protect herself from the scorn of Templars. Joining the Inquisition to this end, she's managed anonymity for a time, but rumors of her notoriety are beginning to threaten the very safety she's sworn to protect. To make matters worse, what began as an act or preservation quickly spirals out of control when she feels something so real -- too real -- upon meeting the Templar's new Knight-Commander.--Prompts and oneshots filled for OC mage, Aurora, fromIn, Love Serenity. These consist mostly of her relationship with with Derlin Barris, and a few of her previous relationship with Knight-Commander Graegoir of Kinloch Hold.Items may or may not be considered canon - mainly it's just fun.If you would like to prompt more for her, leave a comment or send me an ask on my tumblr @ladydracarysao3





	1. “I swear it was an accident.”

**Author's Note:**

> This is for Aurora and Knight-Commander Greagoir - pre [In, Love Serenity](http://archiveofourown.org/works/8841850/chapters/20275030) – while she was in  
> the circle at Kinloch Hold. 

Aurora is on her knees. Begging. Pleading with the Templar standing over her. “It was an accident, I swear! I swear, please. Please, don’t tell anyone. Please.” Her hands clasped, tears falling from her clenched eyes.

“You just vacated all of the books from their shelves… at once…” the Templar whispers, bewildered. “Like it was nothing.” He scratches his head, turning round in a circle. Flabbergasted, he speaks under his breath, “Everything.”

The pair are alone, amidst Aurora’s worst disaster. Books and papers. Desks and chairs. Candelabras. _Everything_. Pulled and tipped and twisted from its home in the library. The mage sniffles and pulls at the Templar’s cloth heraldry, “Please, Ser. I will clean it all. I will put it all back, while everyone still sleeps. I will do anything. Just don’t tell anyone.”

“I don’t know, mage. I think the Knight-Commander needs to see this.”

She desperately reaches out to him, but he leaves her anyway as she cries on the hard, stone floor. She will surely be made tranquil now. She should have never lost her temper like that. She needed to get a better hold on this. Especially after everything that happened. 

There are barely any mages left the circle. She is lucky to be alive as it is, yet here she is, surrounded by proof. She wishes she could burn it all. Burn it to the ground. 

Aurora doubles over, clutching her chest and stomach she sobs.

“Aurora?” Knight-Commander Greagoir’s voice calls to her through her wails. She feels a gentle hand on her shoulder, causing her to jerk. She looks up at him with red, tear stained eyes. As he kneels down, she notices they are alone. The tattling Templar had not returned with him.

“Aurora, my dear, are you alright? What happened?” He doesn’t looks mad, but instead concerned. His hand still on her shoulder.

“I’m sorry Knight-Commander. It was an accident. He just… he just…” she breaks into tears again, burying her face in her hands.

“Cullen has been a little on edge since….” his voice trails off. They both know, no need to explain. “You may be pleased to know that he is being transferred to Kirkwall.” He rubs her shoulders, and she begins to wonder why he is consoling her, when Cullen should be pressing a brand to her head at this very moment.

“What about…” she looks up at him, his kind eyes smiling back at her as he rubs her shoulder. “What about all of this?”

“You’re a bright and intelligent woman, I’m sure you can get it taken care of before everyone wakes for the day. After you rest, come to my office. I think you, me, and Irving should have a chat.” 

A tear cascades down her cheek, he catches it with a gloved finger. Gingerly, he runs the finger down her reddened cheek, along her jaw, and under her quivering chin, lifting it slightly. Their faces so close that she is unsure what to think. “Now, now, Aurora. You are stronger than this, do not cry.” He smiles at her, “Everything will be alright.”


	2. We can’t keep doing this.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> More with Aurora and Graegoir

She races fast, but silently, down the curved, stone hallway of the Circle Tower. Her robes billow and flutter behind her as she bites her tongue, pressing her lips into a tight smile, to stifle the laughter threatening to explode. She ducks into his office, propelling her back against the hard, grey wall of stone just inside the doorway.  She waits.

He follows her, though slower, trying to not raise Templar alarm with sounds of swiftly-paced, clanging armor. When he arrives, he quietly shuts and locks the door behind him, grinning at Aurora through his greying beard. Her chest heaves from gasping breaths. She smiles wildly in return, lips parted and tongue dancing along the backsides of her teeth. Her eyes are bright and gleaming at him as he takes her waist in his hands. He stares amorously back into those wicked, tempting eyes.

Aurora grips her hands against him roughly, pulling him forward with a thrust, effectively slamming his body against her, pinning her against the wall. She slides, slithering between his firm, metal armor and the cold, rough rock behind her, to the tips of her toes. The young mage playfully licks his grinning lips with the tip of her tongue, and rucks her head to nuzzle her nose against his. Her eyes glow at him as if they are made of veilfire, spirits dancing in celebration within them.

“We can’t keep doing this, Aurora,” Knight Commander Greagoir says, not but a whisper, as he leans in to brush his bristled cheek against her soft rosy one.

Aurora cranes her neck to trap his earlobe in her teeth, she sucks on it and giggles low and seductively. “You can do whatever you want,” she whispers breathy whispers into his ear, causing shivers to ignite throughout his body. “You are the Knight-Commander.”

Greagoir roars from deep within his chest, rutting against her body, delving his face into her neck. His hands grip at her soft, pillowy curves.  “Are you sure you want to spend your time with an old man like me?” he asks her through ravishing the delicate slope of her neck.

“You’re not old, my Knight,” she giggles breathlessly under his attentions. “You’re seasoned just to my liking.” He lifts his gaze back to hers. Her eyes study his flushed face, lips moist and swollen. She locks her eyes with his, tilting her head down ever so slightly, looking up through her lashes. Her voice a low, sensuous husk, “I want you, Greagoir.”

He shakes his head, but smiles. Taking her face in his hands, he concedes, “Oh Kitten, you will be the death of me.”


	3. Shepherd's Pie

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Graegoir and Aurora cook together.

It is a quiet night.

And on this night, Greagoir wants to bring Aurora some  _normal_.

Aurora timidly steps into the kitchen on the lower level of the circle tower. The large room is mostly dark, the staff had finished for the day, cleaned, and left. On the far end of the room, however, glows the warm fire light of the hearth, and a few candles surrounding a work station.

She sees Greagoir there, wearing an adorable white apron over his linen undershirt and cotton trousers. The soft glow of the candles show a pleasant expression, his beard pitched higher from a smile. As she quietly steps toward him, she watches how he gingerly peels the skin of a potato in his hand. A pile of peelings are pushed to the side, with a few naked potatoes lined up in front of him on the wooden prep table.

He looks up from his task and his smile broadens. “Hello, Kitten. I’m sorry, I started without you.”

“What are you doing?” she asks. Leaning forward on the table, she braces herself with her hands and peers amusedly the assortment of items spread out around him. Along with the potatoes are carrots, onions, a basket of pea-pods, canisters with assorted powders, and a large ball of ground meat.

“You mean, what are  _we_  doing, my dear, and  _we_  are cooking.” He finishes with the potato in his hand, with one good swipe, he knocks all of the peelings into a large trash bucket by his feet.

Aurora giggles, “Oh? And what are we cooking, my knight?”

“Shepherd’s pie. My favorite. My mother used to make this when I was a boy, and whenever I would come home to visit.” He hands Aurora a knife and directs her to cube the potatoes, and then to add them to a pot of boiling water over the fire. He wanders away mumbling something about mushrooms, leaving Aurora staring at the naked potatoes with a knife in her hand.

Aurora is full of trepidation. She has never cooked before. She’s never needed to. She does her best, cutting the root vegetable into cubes while Greagoir flits around the room grabbing bowls, washing things, and Maker only knows what else. When the potatoes are boiling, he decides to chop the onions and carrots after laughing at the ‘cubes’ she had produced. He tasks her with peeling the pea-pods to get the small, green prizes inside. He hums happily to himself has he chops, Aurora watches him silently while her small bowl of peas steadily grows.

“I’ve never done anything like this before,” she says dropping the empty pods into the trash bucket. “What made you decide to do this?”

Without warning, Greagoir grabs Aurora’s arm and swings her body against his. He wraps his arms around her, kisses her forehead, continuing his happy humming. He spins her around in a sort of dance around the kitchen. She laughs and spins along with him, her blue eyes sparkling as she gazes at him fondly.

“I wanted to give you a night of normal, my dear, something to show you how special you are to me.” The words both fill her with warmth and sadness. Happy that he cares for her, sad that she is not, nor ever will be, normal.

They continue their cooking adventure, searing the meat with the chopped onion, mashing the potatoes, making a gravy from the grease in the meat’s pot, and the delicately layering meat, vegetable, gravy, and mashed potatoes. They place the layered meal in the large cast iron oven, and wait.

It smells delicious.

Somehow Aurora is covered in flour even though barely any was used in the gravy. “I don’t think I’m very adept at this cooking thing.” She laughs as she futilely tries to wipe flour from her front.

Greagoir grabs her again, pulling her in close. “You’re perfect,” he says, then kisses her lips softly. The whiskers of his beard tickle her nose, and she smiles into their kiss.

They do more kissing than anything else at that point, as they wait for their pie to cook. He lifts her, propping her on the wooden, prep table. He kisses her like she is precious, like she is the air he needs to breathe, like she is the lyrium he needs to survive.

It is a quiet night.

And on this night, Aurora and Greagoir can almost pretend that they are normal.


	4. Wallowing with Cheese (Alistair Cameo)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This is set during my epically long fic In Love, Serenity. This is from a scene in chapter 20 where Alistair sits with my mage OC, Aurora, but unlike the story, this is from Alistair’s POV.

Alistair rounds the final steps to the middle level of the Herald’s Rest. It’s darker up there, and marginally quieter - but not so quiet that he can’t find something else to focus on beyond the singing in his head.

He’s not much in the mood for the jovality found on the lower-level of the Tavern. As the days and years go on, he finds himself less and less in the mood for other people’s happiness. He’s tired. Worn. And sometimes he just cannot shove that fake smile on his face and pretend everything's just dandy.

He walks the dim level of the tavern, looking for a place to sit and just watch the goings-on below, when he sees a familiar face. The circle mage from Ferelden, Aurora, is slumped over a table by herself, staring down at the festivities with the saddest of puppy faces Alistair has possibly ever seen. He takes a deep breath, while he isn’t in the mood for rejoicing in someone else’s happiness, he can most certainly wallow with another lost soul.

“I see you also prefer the company of no one…here in the darkness,” he says. He would think that maybe he would have startled her, with the way she had been focused down below, but she just rolls her head on her arms in his direction. She says nothing beyond a dull stare, so he fills the silence. “Mind is I join your solitude?” He quirks the faintest smile and shows her the plate in his hands. “I have cheese.”

* * *

 

She eyes him up and down then cocks the crown of her head to the empty chair beside her. Alistair sits and places his snack on the table. He leans back in his chair, pressing against the creaking wood with the weight of the world.

Aurora sighs and nibbles on a piece of cheese without lifting her head from the table. He notices that her eyes are fixed on a particular person down below, and he can’t help but wonder if she is wading through a similar hellscape as he. He eats his cheese and tries to focus away from the calling in his head. He’s sure it’s fake, but that doesn’t keep away the maddening incessant nature of it. Or the realization that this will really happen someday.

His mind drifts to Lymeria and her quest to find a cure. With each painful heartbeat, his thoughts wander. He sees her face, those beautiful pale-blue eyes staring back at him through her mask of black, her bright red hair blowing in her face from the howling wind on the coast, his thumb wiping a tear from her porcelain cheek before kissing her one last time. The images of the last time he ever saw her. The images he fears could be the last time he ever sees her again.

“Alistair?”

“Hmmm?” he responds without thought, mind still transfixed on his love as she walked away from him on that rocky beach.

“How did you do it?” The faint and hoarse question slips through his thoughts and Alistair realizes his silent companion is talking to him.

He releases a weighted sigh and props his boots on the rim of the railing in front of them. “How did I do what, Aurora?”

“How did you and Lymeria find happiness in each other, when you didn’t know if there would even be a tomorrow?”

He swipes a piece of cheese and chews, letting the question hang in the air for a while.  _How_ , indeed. He loves Lymeria more than anything, there was no question about it. But it certainly wasn’t easy. It wasn’t easy for them to admit their love, it wasn’t easy for them to sustain it. It wasn’t easy to be so in love and so apart all at once. Nothing about it was easy, but it was also so very worth it. No matter the pain he feels, or the strength with which the world beats down on them on any given day...he would march to the edge of the map for that woman. He would tie himself to the pyre for that woman.

“I’ll be honest,” he says through chewing. “After the battle at Ostagar, I was feeling pretty low. In one night, Ferelden lost its King, most of its army, and all of its Grey Wardens – save for Mira and me. Mira had only just finished the joining ritual, and I had only been a Grey Warden for six months. And then suddenly, the darkspawn killed all of it. We had no support, we didn’t know anything. Mira had to rely entirely on my knowledge of what it meant to be a Grey Warden, and that was basically nothing. We didn’t even have families to turn to. I was a bastard who grew up living in the stables. Mira had recently witnessed her entire family murdered… yeah… it was pretty dismal.” He takes another piece of cheese and silently chews it.

Aurora turns her head on its side, resting it on her arm while she gazes up at him. He softly smiles back at her, and he feels a little warmer, thinking about how it actually felt to fall in love with Lymeria in the first place.

“But then everything changed…” he whispers. “We went to Lothering after we escaped Ostagar. I was in such a state. But then I noticed a rose… one single rose in a town overrun with misery. The darkspawn were coming, people were fleeing their homes, lives were lost, families were shattered. I saw that rose and I thought, ‘How could something so beautiful exist in a place with so much despair and ugliness?’ I should have left it alone, but I couldn’t. I knew that if I did, the darkspawn would come and just destroy it.”

“There was something else I noticed in Lothering…” he continues. He stares off into the distance. Staring at the image of Lymeria in his mind, smiling at him even though there was so much to frown for. “Mira,” he sighs her name wistfully. “In a lot of ways, I thought the same way when I looked at her. As we continued on our quest, I only became more crazed by her. We had only known each other for a short time, but when around her, I couldn’t think straight. I cared for her a great deal. I couldn’t imagine myself without her…not ever. We sort of… stumbled into each other.” Alistair chuckles softly. “And despite it being the least opportune time, I fell for her. Eventually, after setting up camp for an evening, I gave her that rose. And I told her what a rare and beautiful thing she was.”

“That is really sweet, Alistair,” Aurora says. She lifts her head from the table and rests her chin in her hand.

He lets out a low chuckle. “We had so much uncertainty ahead of us. We didn’t know what the next day would bring, let alone if we had a chance to stop the blight. But I know that I could have never done it alone. I thank the Maker every day, if He listens, for bringing Mira into my life. She changed everything.” He drops his eyes with a sigh, “I just wish I could be with her right now. But I will tell you this much, when I do see her again… I am never letting go.”

A tear falls down Aurora’s cheek. She turns to look at the man she’d been fixated on. The new Knight-Commander. Suddenly, Alistair understands why the woman looked so lost, and a conversation they had had earlier about the mage rebellion makes sense. The woman is in love with a man most would consider to be her enemy in this climate Thedas has made for itself. She must be struggling with the desire to be with him, while everything Thedas has to offer threatens to rip them apart.

Alistair understands that feeling. He understands it well. He recognizes that look in her eye.

Lymeria’s voice sings softly in his mind,  _We can do anything as long as we do it together_. And though they are apart now, they are still together. They are under the same sky, the same stars, the same moons, fighting for the same cause. Together.

He may not have wanted to feign enthusiasm for someone’s happiness. He may have prefered instead, to wallow in despair. But now all he wants to do is help a friend out of her hole. Out of that lonely place he knows all too well.

“You should go to him,” Alistair delicately suggests. “Life is too short… too ugly… to go through it alone. Whatever is stopping you, that is what you should ignore. Not him. You two will be able to get through this, if you do it together.”

Aurora turns to peer at Alistair with a furrow in her brow. “But I am a mage…what if…” Her voice breaks and she remains silent.

“He is the Knight-Commander of the new Templar order in all of southern Thedas. No matter what happens when this is all over, I am confident that he will do whatever he can to protect you and all other mages in his charge.” Alistair says. He looks at Aurora encouragingly and nods toward  Ser Barris. “Go to him,” he urges.

His friend smiles at him with rosey, wet cheeks. She stands and does some kind of clumsy curtsey, then rushes for the stairs. Alistair watches while she descends, and Ser Barris meets her at the base. They embrace and share some words that Alistair cannot hear but very much understands their meaning.

He pops another cube of cheese in his mouth and smiles, feeling a little lighter than before. In this moment, the future doesn’t feel so desolate and his thoughts focus on the smiling face of the love of his life, rather than the tears.


	5. “I have never felt this way about anyone.”

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Prompt. Aurora & Barris (Barris POV)

Nothing has been the same since she came into his world. His stressful, torn asunder, dismal world. He didn’t think that things could get much worse after the breach and the insurmountable number of casualties adding up due to it, and the blasted war. But Corypheus, the envy demon, and their repercussions were worse.

Far worse.

He wasn’t sure if commanding the reconstruction of the Templar order was a blessing or a curse. But he was bound to it. Unwavering. It was taxing, though. The most taxing stressful challenge he has ever faced. His days grew darker. He began losing hope that the world would ever be safe and just, again. No matter what, something sinister always lurks in the shadows, waiting to weaken his spirit further. The world is full of shadows.

And then Aurora.

_Aurora_.

He could say her name a thousand times and it would still bring him a blissful smile.

She has so much fire, so much spirit. She has made him feel things he never thought possible. He had reserved his life to one shrouded in death and decay. He dared not dream of a better life, until her light filled his days.

Like a small glimmering beacon, he spotted it in the night. He raced to it, even though it hid from him. However faint, he could still feel the light’s warmth. Slowly the glimmer grew, until he broke through to find the dawn. 

He found that however luminous, she was wounded, but he will heal her as she healed him. Now he is stronger.

Because now, he has the dawn. 

He has Aurora.

He has never felt love like this before.


	6. Maker Watch Over Her

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Prompt (Barris POV)

Aurora just wants to be normal, to go unnoticed. So, she covers up her pain.

She doesn’t see she’s perfect. She doesn’t see she’s worth it. She doesn’t see that he’d do anything.

Instead, she believes that they were doomed at the start, because she’s been doomed since birth. He sees it in her eyes, that pain and the fear she tries to swallow on her own. He would do anything to show her she’s wrong. She deserves everything, and that’s what he wants to give her. She doesn’t realize it, but she’s already given it to him.

She leans now, on the stone balcony’s edge, eyes washing over the many forms mingling in the courtyard below.  

“I still don’t know what I’m doing here,” Aurora says softly into the cool night air.

His heart aches at the sight of her. The despondance in her eyes. The blush on her cheeks. He takes her hand in his and brings it to his lips. A hand that holds so much power, but is so light and delicate to the touch.

“Just because it  _was_ Chantry Law doesn’t mean it  _will_ be.”

“Delrin…” Aurora glances at him, then sighs and looks away. She pulls her hand from his grasp.

“Things are changing.” Delrin takes her hand back and cups it in both of his, softly urging her to look back at him, but she doesn’t. “There are progressive people in charge of the change that is brewing, Aurora. No one will let it go back to the way it was. Even Divine Justinia didn’t wish for that, Maker watch over her.”

“The Chantry has not changed.”

Delrin feels his temper rise, but not at her. “The Chantry is full of low-level fools not important enough to go to the conclave. Fools who lack the imagination to even pick a new Divine.”

Aurora turns her gaze back to him, her eyebrows raised in high. “Delrin,” she says his name again, this time more surprised than defeated. The blush on her cheeks deepens in color and she nibbles on his lower lip.

Bringing her beautiful, fragile hand to his lips once again, Delrin pledges himself to her and all mages. She still looks at him as if she doesn’t believe him, but there is a tiny spark of hope deep in blue eyes.

He smiles. Pulling her close, Delrin wraps his arms around Aurora. She leans into him, and he tells himself that at least for now, she is content. At least for now, he has her trust. And they watch as the sunset set upon Halamshiral.


	7. Sleepless

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This takes place after Adamant Fortress, where Delrin Barris was so badly injured that he was confined to the healers wagons and tents during the slow march back to Skyhold. -- Prompt (Barris POV)

As Delrin’s strength returned, so did his virility, and he is growing restless in the confines of the healer’s tents.

Seeing Aurora almost daily isn’t helping. Well, it is… It helps his spirit, but it isn’t helping his need to get out of that blasted cot.

He finds himself anxiously waiting to see her sneak into his tent every evening, and all but begging her to stay before she almost as quickly runs off again. She is so concerned about what her presence does to his reputation. But Maker forgive him, damn anyone who may question them.

Delrin wants nothing more than to get away from the healers. He insists that he is better every day, but in turn, they insist he stay under their watch a while longer. It’s frustrating. Infuriating. All he wants to do is leave those tents and profess everything he feels to her. Exclaim to her and the world that she has stolen his heart, and he’s never been happier.

He tosses and turns in his cot nightly, dreaming up ways he could prove to her that she’s worth a happy ending. Dreaming up ways to show the world that she and every mage -  _and every Templar, for that matter_  - are worth their happy endings. He knows she won’t believe him on just words alone. So he lies there, wide awake, thinking of her and everything he would do to prove he is falling deeply for her, and that he wants all of Thedas to know.

He has plans for the Order. He has plans for Thedas. He has plans for his life. And Aurora was with flame that ignited the change in his heart and the drive to apply that change to the world.

So, while stuck in these Maker-forsaken healing tents, he lies awake. And he dreams. And he plans. And he falls deeper in love.


	8. Fuck. You.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> On the way to Adamant - Aurora & Dorian

Aurora is sauced.

Like, she has been sauced and saucy before, but here… in this stupid fucking desert… she’s real, REAL saucy.

Eyes glazey, she looks over her mug of – really, who the fuck knows or cares what it is. It’s got alcohol in it, that’s all that matters – and glares at the pompous, Tevinter asshole on the other side of a gathering around a small campfire.

This is all his fault.

He’s the reason she is in this pit.

“This is all yerfuckinfault,” she slurs loudly, during a pause in conversations.

Dorian stares back at her indignantly, his hand pressed to his chest. “Are you speaking to me, Aurora? Why, I thought you were back to ignoring me.”

“I should be in Skyhole, but I’mnot. I’m here. With you. I hate you.” The words stumble from her mouth like sticky marbles. Marbles that have been covered in old, thick molasses and don’t know where to go, or why they even exist.

Dorian sighs and rises from his crouched position on a wooden box. He briskly walks around the fire to Aurora’s stupor, and lifts her by her arm. “If you insist on being…  _you_ … let’s at least do this where there are fewer eyes and ears for you to regret in the morning, my dear,” he says sternly as he pulls her wobbly form away from the group. Pulling her firmly beyond everyone, by the tents, away from ear shot.

“I don’t need your help,  _VINT_!” she screeches, pulling her arm from his grasp.

Dorian grabs her shoulders, leveling her drunk, spiteful eyes with his. “Aurora,” he says, an edge to his voice, but born of concern and friendship, even if she doesn’t deserve it. “You need me as much as I need you.”

“Yer fuckin full of it, you and your flouncy mustache.” She puffs airs from her mouth directly skyward, as if blowing an invisible, matching mustache on her face.

“Well, when you say it like that, Aurora, I’m going to have to  _Fuck_.  _You_. Right back.” Dorian sighs and turns the mage to face away from him. He still grips her shoulders, but stands behind, guiding her through the small tent city the Inquisition erected.

“You are obviously impossible to talk to right now, we can try again when you’re sober. Or rather  _hung over_ , on your horse during tomorrow’s ride. Maybe then, I can help you remove your beautiful, blonde head from your ridged, little asshole.”


	9. Sheer

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Aurora Monroe and Delrin Barris at the Halamshiral.  
> (Barris POV)

The winter palace was such a chore. Delrin could barely keep straight all of the foreign Orlesian names, let alone the ridiculous laundry lists of information about each one. He was sure he was out of the noble lifestyle at a young age. He never dreamed her would be Knight-Commander and thrown into the politics of nobility.

He enters his quarters, shoulders slumped and spirit dismantled. He needs a few moments rest from the constant conversation, the constant prying eyes, and the constant flirtations.

How much he would love to scream in their faces _, I am unavailable, please fuck off._  

He tells lookie-loos repeatedly that  _yes_ , he is  Templar,  _yes_ , he is unmarried, but  ** _no_** , he is not available.

He rests on a small desk chair in his humble guest room at the Winter Palace. He desperately calls for the strength to endure the ridiculousness that awaits him on the other side of his door, when he hears a soft rapping. He groans inwardly wondering what terrible person followed him to his room.

Before he has a chance to answer the soft knocking, the door slowly creaks open.

Blond, golden waves and crystal, blue eyes peer sheepishly around the ornate door to his room. Aurora clears her throat softly and stutters, “De-Delrin?… Are… Are you alright?”

“Aurora?!” Delrin jumps from his chair immediately upon seeing her beautiful face. If he could spend the rest of this blasted trip with just her, he would know that the Maker hears his prayers. “I am much better, having you found me, I can assure you.” He grins and lends his hand to her as she fully enters his room. She shuts the door, before bashfully approaching him. With all of the grace of his dreams, she seemingly floats toward him, placng her delicate fingers into his palm.

Delrin takes her gloved hand and presses a soft kiss upon her knuckles. She is a vision. Long white gloves line his arms past her elbow. The blue, chiffon dress he gave her, sparkles and dazzle in the low moonlight filtering through his room’s window. The neckline of the gown rides just below the shoulders, showing off the exquisite curve to her shoulders, and the soft flesh that he dreams of kissing at the nape of her neck. 

He can’t help but stare at the visage before him. How he wishes her to be comfortable enough for him to scream at the palace gates that his heart belongs to the most wonderful, beautiful woman in Thedas.

_Aurora_.

“I was worried when you skulked away,” she smiles coyly at him, dipping her head down and fluttering her lashes. He is reminded of the first encounter he ever had with her, however, this is different. She means it this time. His heart skips a beat.

“I apologize my dear. I just needed a break from…” He looks at the door to his room, “from them,” he sighs.

“Does this mean I won’t get the dance I was promised?” she asks.

“Oh, of course you will, my lady.” He grins proudly at her, so happy to finally have her affection. He takes the delicate gloved hand in his and guides her back to the door. “Shall we?”

She swiftly pulls her hand from his and blushes, “One moment please… I… I just need to make an… adjustment… before we go through.” Her gorgeous cheeks burn pink as she drops her eyes in embarrassment. She walks over to the trunk which houses his clothing at the foot of his bed. Aurora props her foot on the top and slowly hikes up the skirts of glittery, blue chiffon and silk.

Delrin watches as the soft, curved lines of her calf and thigh are relieved to him. He chokes on his breath seeing the slope of her foot, perched in a tall stiletto shoe, allows sheer stockings the glide up her pale, supple leg. He feels the air evacuate Thedas entirely as he watches her adjust the silky, sheer stocking at mid-thigh. He silken, white gloved fingers pulling and tugging at the silk around her leg. The sight of her makes his mouth run dryer than the Hissing Wastes. Aurora fixes the rigging of her garter belt to hold her stockings more securely.  

All Delrin wants to do is rush to her, take her tender leg in his hands, and worship every inch of her with his mouth and fingers.

Aurora flings her precious skirts back over her knee, bringing her foot back to the floor. “Alright, I’m ready now.”

He proudly takes her hand again and leads her out the door. Allowing her to exit first, he steals one last body-long glance of appreciation, holding his breath to the sight of the ethereal being of which he is falling in love.


	10. Sunshine

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> NSFW!! Morning sex prompt for Aurora and Barris (Barris POV)

He feels her fingers first.

Delicate little fingertips trickling across his skin under the sheets. Cold, naughty fingers that she dips cross his bare hip, over to his stomach. No matter how fiery Aurora is, his lyrium soaked skin always burns like a furnace against her chilly touch. The feeling is pleasant however, refreshing. Like a cool drink on a hot summer’s day.

She scoots her body flush against his back as he exhales. Sleeping on his side, he has yet to open his eyes. Rather, Delrin enjoys focusing the frisky sensations of his love attempting to ease him awake. He snaps his eyes open, however, when he feels the cool, soft skin of her breasts press against his bare back. Aurora always sleeps in a nightie, but as she arches up to paint sweet, tender kisses across his shoulder and neck, he feels the unmistakable feeling of her naked skin brush against him. As she does, her fingers glide across his stomach, up to his chest, then lightly rakes her nails back down.

He shifts, turning his head to catch a glimpse of her kissing the tip of his shoulder. He catches her eyes in his and she smiles sheepishly against his skin. She is a ray of light. Her curly, golden hair slips from behind her ear as she smiles. A precious, silky lock cascades down the front of him. He captures it in his hand, softly stroking the velvet texture between his fingers as he gazes into her eyes. The blue of them sparkle in the morning light that peaks its rays through the window. Dark black smudges around her eyes, remnants of yesterday’s kohl. It’s a tempting sight, makes her look like a coy, impish vixen.

“Good morning, Sunshine,” he says, hushed and sleepy. “What are you up to?”

Aurora doesn’t answer. She just holds his stare in hers as has her hand wanders across his stomach. Delrin pulls his lips between teeth as that chilled hand dips from his abs into his smalls. He gulps, breathing heavier, as she wraps her fingers around his already hard cock.

He moves to lie on his back, she leans up so that he can easily nestle next to her, her torso overlapping onto his. His eyes grace every inch of her that he can see, sheets still covering half of her naked body. He hooks his arm around her, lightly rubbing her back as she glides and pumps her hand around him. He closes his eyes, moaning softly and enjoying the feeling of her as she continues to glide those cool fingers against his hot length. She leans down and kisses his chest, playfully catching his nipple in her teeth.

If she wants to be naughty, he can give her naughty.

Delrin surprises his love by quickly grabbing her and flipping her to her back. She shrieks in giggling delight, loose blonde curls swinging in the air, landing in a golden halo around her head on the pillow. He settles himself between her thighs, hovering over her, so that he can take in her form. He drinks her in with his eyes and can’t help but think that she is what men fight wars for. She is everything worth having in this world.

He leans down and kisses her deeply, taking the time to show attention to every curve of her soft, luscious lips with his and his tongue. He glides his cock between her thighs, rutting his hips so that he does not enter her, but instead presses and slides long her wetness and clit. Aurora bucks against him in response, crying soft, breathless sounds against his lips as he teases her.

Continuing his rutting as she grinds against him, he breaks their kiss to look into her lustful, hooded eyes. “Did you want something, Aurora?” he asks in the lowest husk his voice can rumble.  The voice he knows drives her wild. She grips her hands around the tight muscles of his arms, feeling his strength. He knows she gets hotter when she caresses the power in his muscles while he is over her. But she hasn’t answered, so he ceases his rutting against her. Breaking their contact, it surely causing him as much pain as it does her.

She writhes beneath him, face pouting. Pleading, but silent, save from soft whimpers. “Use your words, Aurora,” he gently commands.

Pink spreads across her cheeks. As pink as her beautiful, kiss-swollen, glistening lips. “Take me,” a faint sound, carried away in panting breath. “Please.”  As the word leaves her lips, he enters her. Sliding slowly in, she arches her back, digging her nails into his taut biceps. Leaning down to kiss her favorite spot at the nape of her neck, he ravishes her. Steadily pumping into her soft warmth, faster and harder. Delrin glides his wet, hot mouth against her gradually heating skin. She moans with each thrust, increasing in volume and pitch as he increases speed and strength.

Pulling his kisses from her neck, he hooks her supple leg over his shoulder, angling for a deeper advantage. He quickly feels her coming to the edge as he rucks into her. She looks up at him, eyes singing to him in sweet agony.  She falls silent for a moment, biting her lower lip and pinching her brows together, until all at once he sees and feels her come undone beneath him. It is too much for him to endure. He follows her, spilling himself deep inside after one final, ragged, breathless thrust.

Their bodies gasping and writhing against each other as they ride their orgasms together, his eyes stay focused on hers. “Good morning, Sunshine,” he says through a wide, toothy grin.

“Good morning, Knight-Commander.”


	11. Meeting Delrin's Parents

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Prompted!

“Are you sure we should be so open about who I am?” Aurora asks as their horses round the top of a hill and Delrin’s family home come into view.

Delrin smiles at her. “Do not worry, my light, I told them that you are a mage long ago. Everything is fine.”

Aurora stares ahead at his family’s estate. It is a picturesque Ferelden mansion surrounded by beautiful farmland. The kind of grand plantation home Aurora has only ever read about in stories. It’s been easy for her to forget that he comes from nobility when all she’s known is what she sees in Skyhold. How could his noble family be comfortable with her? Not only is she a mage, but she also comes from nothing. Probably less than nothing. She has no idea where she comes from at all. She is sure that if his family ever pictured him marrying, it wouldn’t be to a woman like her.

The closer they get, the more it feels like the is a rock stuck in her throat, every heartbeat feels like needles stab into into her. She’s terrified.

When they reach the end of the long gravel drive that leads to the front door, it opens. A few servants come rushing out with their heads lowered. Two men come to take their horses away, after one helps Aurora dismount her mare. A young lady welcomes them and escorts them through the grand doors to the drawing room where his parents wait.

As soon as they step through the room’s doorway, they hear a loud,“Delrin!” and his mother stands immediately, floating across the room to embrace her son.

“Mother,” he says with a warm smile at the end of their hug. His mother takes a half step back to look at Aurora, and the mage swallows hard. She feels heat spread through her ears.

“Mother, I’d like you to meet Aurora - my fiancee,” Delrin states proudly, so proudly that Aurora smiles shyly and the heat from her ears spreads to her cheeks.

Aurora bows her head and curtseys, not sure what else to do. “It’s lovely to meet you, Messere” she says softly but not waiver to her voice, and for that she is grateful.

“Oh, aren’t you lovely. Please, call me Rená,” his mother says, smiling warmly. “Delrin, she’s even lovelier than you described.” She steps toward Aurora and takes her in her arms. Her hug is soft. Welcoming. Aurora now knows where Delrin learned his caring, nurturing side.

She pulls away to look into Aurora’s eyes. Her’s are beautiful peridot-green like her son’s, emitting a kindness that is soothing under their gaze, and making Aurora feel her pent up nervousness start to dissipate.

“Welcome, my dear,” Rená says, “I’m so glad to have finally met you. My son has written so much about you. You truly captured his heart, I’ve never heard him sound so happy in entire his life. Thank you for bringing light to his days.”

Aurora is stunned speechless. Her eyes feel the pressure of emotion, but not out of sadness. She never expected his mother to be so welcoming, so kind. And she knows that Aurora is a mage, with no money, or family, or title… it’s baffling. She can’t wrap her head around how this woman could be so accepting so quickly.

His father follows closely behind, taking his son’s hand for a firm shake. “We’ve heard a lot about you, Aurora,” his father says as he turns a friendly but reserved glance in her direction. Where his mother is soft and willowy, his father’s presence is pleasant, yet commanding. “I’d be interested to learn of your life in the circle.” Her heart skips a beat, fear creeping back in, but the man smiles and his wife lightly slaps him on the shoulder.

“Jervin, stop. Let the girl settle in. Give her a chance to like us before you start in with the questions,” Rená chides and his father laughs, putting Aurora at ease again. Rená grins at her, “Jervin loves stories, don’t let him intimidate you. He’s harmless - just a big curious softy. Come,” she says and lends her hand, “Let’s sit, you’ve had a long journey. You must be exhausted.”

Aurora follows and they sit together on a settee. Delrin and Jervin stand at the edge of the room, having a conversation in hushed tones, Delrin glancing over and connecting his eyes with her often. Glances that are filled with love and pride. It fills her heart while she tells his mother all about their journey from Skyhold that week.

Rená is amazingly easy to talk to, and soon Aurora finds herself laughing. She shares stories about the Inquisitor and the happier moments as part of the Inquisition. Delrin and his father join them and soon laughter and pleasant conversation fills the room. Aurora eases comfortably into the afternoon, forgetting that she was ever nervous at all. Some how in the span of a few hours, Derlin’s parents have made her feel as if she belongs, as if she’s always had a home there.

When she is with Delrin, Aurora feels like she’s home. She never knew that feeling could compound on itself, but it has.

Now, she has a home and a family.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I used a little bit of my mother in law for inspiration here. Hubs comes from a large family, and I am a very shy only child who is easily overwhelmed. His mother would always find a way to sit with me and let the rest of the world fall away while just she and I talked. 
> 
> She made me feel welcomed, cherished, and accepted. There was never a doubt in my mind that she was glad her son chose me, because she told me every day. I only wish I could have had more time with her. She passed not long after we were married. She was the kindest woman. The most special and welcoming lady, and I miss her desperately. So In a way, this is dedicated to her.


	12. Talking about having kids

Aurora’s eyes flutter open, but they immediately regret it, desperately wishing she could be asleep again. Somehow however, Gidget, their pet mabari, always knows exactly the moment she wakes up. She wonders if it is a deep breath she tends to take as her eyes open for the first time in the morning. No matter what it is, the dog is drool-smiling in her face now, tail wagging, waiting to be let out.

Aurora groans, sitting up in bed with a long, marvelous stretch. She looks beside her to Delrin, blissfully still asleep and snoring softly. She sighs, mildly annoyed that he sleeps so soundly, and that it is she who always has to let Gidget out. She pulls the sheets away and groggily steps out of bed, leading her excited, happy pooch to the back door.

While she waits for Gidget to do her doggy business - you know, check her doggy mail and leave her doggy messages - Aurora wanders into the kitchen and contemplates breakfast. She finds that what she actually does is stands in front of the window over the wash basin and stares blankly outside. She’s not sure how long she was standing there, dazed into thoughts she doesn’t even remember, when she feels her husband come from behind.

“Good morning my love,” Delrin purrs a sleepy rumble into her ear. He presses his warm body against hers, wrapping his arms around her, hands traveling her curves the entire way, until they meet in the middle, and he squeezes her tightly. He trails kisses from her ear down to the nape of her neck as she hums in appreciation.

“It’s looks to be that way,” she smiles, running her fingertips down the soft, firm skin of his arms.

“You know what would make this morning even better?”

“Not again…” she groans.

“Hear me out, Aurora,” Delrin says, spinning her gently to face him. He stares into her annoyed eyes. “You would make a wonderful mother.”

“And if our child was like me?”

“Then he or she would have the perfect teacher.”

Aurora sighs, rolling her eyes to look away. “I never thought I could have a family, it was never something…” her voice trails off, anxious and confused at that notion.

Delrin lightly takes her chin between his thumb and fore finger, calling her eyes back to his. “But you can. We can. We can do this together.”

She smiles softly, a small concession. He grins proudly at her in return, leaning in to brush their lips together. Quickly, their kiss gains intensity, passion sparking between the two bodies. Delrin lifts her sharply. She giggles, squealing through their kiss and wraps her legs around him. He carries her back to the bedroom.

As Delrin gently lays her down on their bed, they hear a little yip from Gidget outside. Their Marbari is ready to come in for her breakfast. Delrin ignores the call, as he delicately slides his wife’s smalls off her hips and over her thighs.

“Delrin,” Aurora says breathlessly, “What about the dog.”

He tosses Aurora’s frilly underthings to the side behind him. Leaning down and over her, nestled between her soft thighs, he kisses her deeply.  As he eases into place inside her, listening to the sharp intake of breath she takes at the feeling, Delrin whispers in her ear, “She can wait.”


	13. You Are Not Prepared

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Prompted for more about Delrin and Aurora plus kids!

“You’re meeting your Auntie Izzy today, Sterling!” Aurora coos to the baby boy slung in her left arm. Sterling peers up at her, his tongue darting in and out of drooly lips.

“Shit. Are you getting hungry? Did I not just feed you?” Aurora runs a free hand through her messily pinned back and greasy hair. “I can’t remember. It feels like we only just finished. She watches as Sterling finds his fist and shoves it into his mouth, quickly following it up with a grimace and huffing, fast breath.

A knock raps at the door as Sterling begins to grunt and squirm. “No. No no no,” Aurora feels herself begin to panic. It was always easy to set of her stress meters, but ever since she birthed her little boy, they haven’t become ever the more sensitive. “Sterling, darling, I fed you before Izzalea arrived for a reason. You are supposed to be happy now. Content. Asleep, even!” she says and races to the door.

Sterling returns her words and worry with a loud wail. By the time she is opening the door, he is thoroughly thrashing and screaming - his head flopped over her arm, his little finger nails digging into her chest, and his legs pumping quickly in and out with rage.

Izzalea and Cullen stand at the threshold, stuffed nug and flowers in hand, and big smiles that quickly fall into furrowed faces as soon as they see the state Aurora is in.

Aurora sighs and drops her shoulders. “I’m sorry,” she yells over the tantrum. “Please…come in, if you want.” And with that, her defeat looming over her like a storm cloud, she walks from the door and flings herself and her angry bundle into a rocking chair.

Izzalea and Cullen walk in, closing the door behind them, pity plainly on their faces as they look to each other and then back at Aurora and her baby. They place their gifts on the kitchen table and stand awkwardly in the room. Two important, powerful people, standing before her in her humble home of doom, looking helpless and uncomfortable.

“Meet Sterling,” she says flatly. She tries to get her child to latch to her breast, but by this point, he is so angry that he is even refusing the milk he is screaming for.

To make matters worse, the sight of her breast pulled from her frock causes Cullen to pale and avert his eyes. His hand finding purchase behind his neck, he clears his throat and desperately looks for something to say as if it would be found written on the ceiling.

Izzalea simply feigns a smile. A pity-filled smile.

Sterling finally latches and calms. Aurora closes her eyes to attempt to collect herself and move past her embarrassment. “Please,” she says, “Sit and be comfortable. Welcome to my hellscape.”

“Wow, I’m sorry Aurora. Is it always like this?” Izzalea asks while pulling out a chair at the table.

Aurora smiles. “Only every minute of every day.”

“Will Delrin be arriving soon?” Cullen asks the ceiling.

“Within an hour, I’m sure.”

“How are you doing?” Izzalea asks.

The question hangs in her mind like a foreign puzzle she could never solve, and Izzalea reaches to tuck a straggly hair behind Aurora’s ear. As she opens her mouth to respond… something, though she’s not sure what, Sterling begins to cough, spitting up most of what she’d fed him down the front of them both.

Aurora thinks of the fact that she has not bathed in days, all of her cloth is covered in the fluids of this child, and as he begins to cry again, she says with tears streaming down her own face, “I’m fine…I’ve got everything under control.”


	14. Little Demon

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> More baby stuff!

The grunts begin to groan from a tiny bundle in a tiny basket at the foot of the bed. The tense and still feeling in the air that follows is palpable. 

There in the bed, they wait, rigid and holding their breaths. Waiting for the bundle to decide whether or not it is waking.

Then it happens, a shriek of a cry erupts at the foot of the bed, and the two bodies lying in wait groan in unison.

“I’ll check his nappie,” Delrin says, bending to sit up.

Aurora grabs his arm. “No, let me tend to him. You need your rest.”

“We’re in this together, Rory.”

She smiles, though she knows he is unlikely to see it in the low light of the room. “We are. But your portion in this is making sure the roof stays over our heads. You’ve slept through too many morning drills as it is.”

“They know we have a new baby.”

Aurora groans and hauls herself out of bed. “That is no baby. That is a demon  _disguised_ as a baby.” She hears Delrin chuckle in the darkness behind her as she lifts the crying bundle into her arms. “I’m serious. He may be cute, but I’m convinced a demon crept into our room that night.” She sleepily sits on the edge of the bed and lifts her breast to help the shrieking bundle begin to feed. “Serves us right for conceiving in wartime…a war of demons and darkspawn and nonsense.”

Her nipple is then tugged and pinched so sharply that she hisses. She adjusts the latch with a sigh, holding back the tears from frustration and exhaustion that beg to unleash. “What if a piece of Corypheus found its way…”

Then, a hand lovingly rubs her back with the soft sound of  _shhhh_ accompanying it. “He’s not Corypheus, love. He’s just a baby.”

“A demon baby,” she says with a pout and a scowl. The bed creaks behind her until Delrin’s chin rests on her shoulder and his arms wrap around both her and the bundle. A wash of warmth consumes her. She almost forgets how frustrated and exhausted she is. For a moment, she basks in the glow of the love and support in the room instead.

“You’re doing great,” he whispers into her ear, and a tear almost escapes the corner of her eye. “It won’t be like this forever. It will get better.”

“That’s what they all say,” she huffs. “Frankly, I’m tired of hearing it, and I’m ready for the better to be  _here_ …now.”

Just then, there is a delicate little sigh from the bundle attached to her breast. She looks down to see a content, beautiful, and cherubic face looking back at her. She sighs blissfully in response. Delrin squeezes them a little tighter.

“I love him,” she says. “So much that I can’t stand it.”

“He’s amazing… You both are.”

She smiles down at the innocent eyes gazing at her. “Hello my little ruiner of the world,” she coos. The baby smiles, and she chuckles. “See, Delrin? He knows.” 

Turning her head to whisper into Delrin’s skin and place a soft kiss, she says, “Little demon.”


	15. Snowflakes

“Pappa! Pappa! Pappa!” Delrin walks in the front door of his home to his six year old son running toward him with open arms.

“Well hello, little man,” he smiles reaching down to pick up his child, resting the boy’s weight on his hip. The boy points to the kitchen table, beckoning his father to take him there. Delrin finds a smattering of cut papers and art projects on the kitchen table. “What do we have here, Sterling? What have you been up to today?”

“Momma’s teaching me to make snow,” the boy says proudly.

“She is? Where is your Momma now?” He sets the boy down and glances around, looking for his love’s golden tresses.

“She’s thawing my room. Look!” Sterling holds up paper snowflakes with exuberance. Lifting one, he waves it around, and then grabs another to do the same, and so on. “They’re all different. Momma says they’re all special, like me!”

“What do you mean she is thawing your room, Sterling?” Delrin crinkles his brow as he smiles at his son’s art.

“Did you show your father your other trick, my darling?” Aurora’s voice coos as she rounds a corner from the bedroom corridor.

Delrin turns to embrace his beautiful wife. He wraps his arms around her and kisses her forehead. “Hello, my ray of sun,” he says before brushes his lips on hers. The feeling still sends spraks through his body, as much as it did the first time.

Spinning her around so that she is in front of him, her back against his chest, he wraps his arms around her and rests his chin on her shoulder. They look down proudly at their son and he murmurs softly to his wife, “ _Thawing_  his room?”

“Show Pappa what I taught you, Sterling. Just the way we did it earlier,” Aurora says calmly.

The boy sets his paper snowflakes back down on the table and holds out his palm. He stares at it intently.

“Remember to focus, that’s it darling. Stay calm and in control, just like I taught you,” her voice is as gentle as it is supportive. She squeezes Delrin arms in hers and whispers under her breath as Delrin tenses around her, “Stay calm, my love.”

The boy closes his eyes and breathes in a deep and controlled breath. He opens his eyes and slowly, fractals of ice begin building above his palm. The ice grows and builds upon itself, spinning slowly. Light reflects off the varied surface causing it to almost sparkle. It spins and curves and creates a beautiful array of glassy shapes.

A work of art.

Delrin has never seen anything like it. He is nervous, but in awe. His boy is a mage. And he has such control for one so young. There is no doubt in Delrin’s mind that Sterling inherited his mother’s power, and thankfully also her control.

“He is very special,” Aurora says softly, her voice almost glowing. Her body radiates in his arms. 

“Just like his mother.”


End file.
